


The Third Annual Fantastic Four Christmas Weekend

by silver_doe287



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Christmas, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Winter, basically a bunch of christmas things smashed together, i wrote this as a gift for my beta, no beta we die like men, pure fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-13 17:40:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28782132
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/silver_doe287/pseuds/silver_doe287
Summary: For Cloud Strife, his attendance at the annual Christmas weekend with his friends is usually a time of relaxing and spending some quality time with his girlfriend, Tifa. This year should be no different, if only he can move beyond the awkwardness that the Fantastic Four suddenly has a fifth member in Aerith's adopted older brother, Sephiroth. One thing's for sure, this would be a Christmas to remember.Written for my beta and friend Rand0mSmil3z as a Christmas present!
Relationships: Tifa Lockhart/Cloud Strife, Zack Fair/Aerith Gainsborough
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	The Third Annual Fantastic Four Christmas Weekend

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Rand0mSmil3z](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rand0mSmil3z/gifts).



> I didn't know I could gift stories on here, so I had gifted it to my wonderful friend and beta Rand0mSmil3z via Google Drive. Now I'm giving the gifting a try here! CloTi and Zerith aren't my main pairings, as those who follow me know, but as this was a special occasion for a very dear friend (and because I'm not too black and white with pairings), I gave it a shot. I hope you all enjoy!

“Here we go!” Zack Fair crowed with delight as the cabin came into view. “Our third annual Christmas weekend can officially start!” One hand on the wheel and the other firmly grasped by the occupant in the passenger seat, Aerith Gainsborough, Zack was looking anywhere but at the road in front of him as he removed his _other_ hand from the wheel and gestured excitedly towards their destination in the distance.

Cloud Strife fought down the urge to grab the safety handle above him as the car slid a little at the lack of steering. “I could have driven,” he grumbled for the umpteenth time as he watched Aerith gently push the hand gripping hers onto the wheel instead. The car remained on the road - for now. 

“All you do is ride a motorcycle, Spikey,” Zack teased as he glanced backwards with a wicked smile. “And I don’t think these roads could’ve been maneuvered by a two-wheel contraption with the snow coming down like it is. You would’ve had us in the ditch long ago.”

Cloud huffed and looked out his window at the approaching house. “Keep your eyes on the road and get us there in one piece then,” he retorted. Being on less than three hours of sleep from studying for his last final, he was unintentionally in a bit of a sour mood.

He couldn’t believe he’d already gotten through another semester of college, and his junior year no less. It only seemed like yesterday he’d been dragged out to do a pub crawl on his 21st birthday back in August. It seemed not too long ago that they’d been at this very cabin the year prior (for the Second Annual Christmas Weekend, as Zack had taken to naming them now). Very particular memories from the previous year invaded his mind, and he felt a blush creep up his neck underneath the black turtleneck he wore.

Something pulled at his left hand, which had inadvertently curled into a fist. Cloud relaxed his hand instantly as he recognized the cool, soft fingers that interlaced with his warmer ones. Glancing to his left, he met Tifa’s careful, shining gaze. Her cheeks were a bit red too, but her lovely eyes sparkled like garnets and matched the hand-knit maroon beanie on her head. She gave his hand a careful squeeze, which he reciprocated as they both resumed looking out their respective windows at the frosty picturesque wonderland of white-blanketed evergreens that passed by them. As the clouds broke away to reveal a dazzling orange sunset sky, he let the contact begin to calm his stressed heart, taking a deep breath and forcing himself to relax. Everything would be better this Christmas.

“...Aerith? Why is Sephiroth’s car in the driveway?”

_Or not._

Cloud cursed himself for assuming things would go well as he whipped his head around to join Tifa’s suspicious stare. Sure enough, as they pulled up the winding, freshly-plowed driveway leading up to the expansive log chalet - whose windows were lit up with cheerful Christmas lights and warmth from the interior - there sat in front of the garage a familiar snow-white car, blending into the landscape in color and being quickly buried by fat snowflakes. The car was a sporty, obviously expensive model and was easily recognized as the seldom-driven set of wheels Aerith’s adopted older brother drove.

“Oh, did I forget to mention that Seph is joining us for the weekend?” Aerith asked innocently, and Cloud swore he saw a knowing smile play on her lips as she and Zack shared a _look_.

Cloud ran a hand through his hair and leaned back in annoyance, cursing. “Thanks a lot, Aerith,” he groaned, already feeling the awkwardness of the weekend overtake his dwindling hopes for a nice, relaxing Christmas with his friends and girlfriend.

Sephiroth and Cloud had a...rocky past, to say the least. When Cloud was a freshman and had just entered Midgar University, then-senior Sephiroth had become smitten with him. While Cloud had been initially surprised and even a bit flattered by the attention from the older man, he just hadn’t felt the same way. While he didn’t like to delve on the past, it was Aerith - his lab partner in Chem 101 and first friend at Midgar U - who had finally set the boundaries on his behalf. Cloud wasn’t the best at verbal confrontation so he’d let her take that initiative and they’d left it at that. While he’d seen Sephiroth a few times over the years - something bound to be unavoidable with the rapidly growing friendship between the two and Zack (and after another year, Tifa when she started her freshman year) - every encounter had been awkward and stiff, not least helpful by Sephiroth’s annoying lack of ability to express emotions and spit out what he wanted to say.

“Isn’t he like a famous chef over in Costa del Sol now?” Tifa asked into the quiet as the car came to a stop in its parking spot for the weekend. Soft, large flakes of snow instantly began coating the windows.

Aerith bobbed her head, replying, “He’s really well-known now! He makes the best dishes, too. Lately he’s been on a baking binge, though.” She rubbed her hands together excitedly. “He wanted to try out some baking recipes on us this weekend and who was I to say no?”

“His sister?” Cloud offered helpfully, unable to shake the slump he was now in. The others laughed, and Cloud just grumbled to himself as he unbuckled and clawed at the handle to remove himself from the car. _Better just get it over with_ , he thought to himself as he stepped carefully on the slick asphalt driveway to get to the trunk. It didn’t help that Tifa didn’t know the full extent of their history, but rather a basic outline. He was sure this weekend she would bring it up, and it was the last thing he wanted to talk to her about, especially on their one-year anniversary.

As he hefted his duffel over his shoulder and grabbed Tifa’s wheeled bag, he caught Zack ushering the ladies towards the house while insisting loudly enough for Cloud to hear that “the men” would bring in the luggage. Cloud watched Tifa’s form as the two of them followed Zack’s instructions and headed for the covered front porch. Zack waltzed back to him and shot him a quick grin.

“Did you know?” Cloud asked accusingly as Zack set about grabbing his and Aerith’s things. The responding sheepish smile and shrug was the only answer he needed. “Come on, man. I wanted it to be a nice weekend away from stress. You just dropped me in the middle of Stress Land.”

Zack snorted. “It’s been _years_ , Spikey. Besides, Elmyra practically begged us to let Seph come this weekend. He’s not exactly one to make friends, so his plan was to spend Christmas all by his lonesome at his restaurant. How could we deny him a fun Christmas?”

He had a point; perhaps Cloud was just being a little selfish. It didn’t help that he was on edge as he slammed the trunk shut and skulked after Zack to enter the chalet last.

The first thing that hit his nostrils as he entered the interior was a mouthwatering combination of cinnamon and oranges, followed by the sappy scent of balsam that was most likely coming from the humongous undecorated tree that dominated the living space at the other end of the open plan great room. Between him and there was the kitchen, which was decorated appropriately for the season. What Cloud suspected was fresh garland garnished the upper cabinets, interspersed with reflective red and gold bulbs. The island light had a few golden bells hanging off it, which matched the line of bells that hung in the doorway above his head. The kitchen itself looked in use, with dirty cookie sheets, mixing bowls, at least two stand mixers and a multitude of baking ingredients strewn across the counter.

In the back of the kitchen, the refrigerator was half-open as the baker was digging through it for something. Silver hair, drawn back in a low pony at the nape of the neck, was the first sign of the baker in question. And then Sephiroth was turning back around, shutting the door with one hand as he held a carton of eggs in the other. The sleeves on his black button-up shirt were rolled up to his shoulders, and Cloud noticed that it hadn’t stopped flour from spilling on it. Hazel eyes narrowed at him for the slightest moment before resuming their impassiveness.

“It’s nice to see you, Cloud,” Sephiroth finally spoke.

Cloud gave a curt nod. “Likewise.”

The introduction he was interpreting as awkward was cut short by a gasp from Aerith. Everybody turned to look where she’d stopped in front of the freshly-cut tree.

“Do you see this magnificent tree?” she squealed in delight. “It’s absolutely perfect! Let’s unpack and then decorate it!”

Tifa, who had momentarily disappeared, popped her head out of one of the side bedrooms. “Cloud and I call this one!” she announced with a big smile his way. Her smile melted his heart a little, and he momentarily forgot about any awkwardness that had been happening as he strode past Zack, offering a smirk of triumph as he did so. Everybody knew the eastern windows had the best views.

Zack stuck his tongue out as Cloud passed, not before adding, “Don’t forget about rule number _one!_ ”

“Which one is that again?” Tifa asked as she leaned against the doorframe and accepted her bag from Cloud.

Zack and Aerith chimed in together. “No sex in the hot tub!”

That made Cloud’s entire face heat up, and he rapidly retreated into their called room, Tifa following and shutting the door loudly for good measure.

“Uuuuuuugh.” Cloud drew out the syllable as he dropped his duffel and collapsed face-first onto the bed. “I can’t believe they’re still lording that over our heads. It’s been a year!”

Tifa giggled and he felt her sit next to his buried face. “They probably keep bringing it up because they love your reaction,” she teased. “You’re adorable when your face is all red.”

“You’re making it worse,” Cloud mumbled, but he turned his head to see her smiling face above him. In one quick move he’d turned on his side, gently wrapped his hand around her neck and pulled her down to join him. She squeaked but let out another giggle as she allowed him to move her.

When they were facing each other on an even playing field, she beamed at him. Cloud leaned in closer to give her lips a quick peck.

“You’re so adorable,” Tifa said again as she brought a hand up to brush bangs away from his face. “My Cloud.”

She was the one who was adorable, and he knew she knew it. He caught her fingers and kissed them gently. That was as far as they could go for now, but for now it was enough - especially when a loud knocking sounded on their door as Zack strolled on by.

“Don’t be doing anything nasty during the day now, you two!” he called through the knotty pine. “Unpack and we’ll see you back out in the living room in five minutes!”

Cloud, who had glanced over to the door, looked back at Tifa.

“Five minutes?” she repeated in question form, her eyelashes batting a little as her face flushed. Cloud felt his chest melt.

“Five minutes,” he agreed, leaning in for another kiss.

* * *

Five too-quick minutes later, Cloud and Tifa emerged from the bedroom looking a little suspicious. He nervously patted his hair while she straightened her clothes, both sneaking knowing smiles as they joined the rest of the group in the living room. The massive eye-roll that Zack sent their way - all in good-natured fun - was more than worth the time spent.

“Get that out of your system?” he joked. “Let’s do this!”

Aerith hopped up and began assigning people jobs, even Sephiroth who was crossing his arms and leaning against the kitchen counter as he watched the interactions. While Cloud began to sort through the multitude of strings of lights that came out in a hopeless, knotted clump, Tifa and Aerith separated the ornaments by some order that Cloud had missed, and Zack was assigned to go grab the ladder out of the garage and to handle everything up high. Sephiroth, meanwhile, was to pick the Christmas tunes. Cloud was a bit suspicious that Aerith’s brother would have no idea what to pick, but found himself pleasantly surprised when soft, jazzy Christmas music began adding its ambiance to the room.

After battling the endlessly tangled lights for what felt like an ungodly amount of time, Cloud was beginning to get frustrated. Zack had returned with the ladder and was currently balancing precariously on it as he reached up to secure the star at the top. The star in question was six-pointed and covered in a layer of fake frost, which was buried under mounds of glitter. Aerith in particular was so excited about it she now wore the evidence on her hands, arms, and even her face. Tifa laughed and ran her finger across Aerith’s arms before poking Cloud’s cheek.

“Cheer up,” she encouraged with bright eyes. “Here, let me help you.” And her steady fingers tugged the mess of lights from him. Cloud sighed in frustration as he watched her, as if by magic, pull more and more of the strand away from the knot he’d only made worse.

It took a few more minutes and Aerith’s glittery help too, but eventually the lights were untangled. Aerith dragged a chair over to the tree and stood opposite Zack while they wound the string down from the top to the bottom. Cloud still got the honors of plugging them in when the lights were positioned right, something he was secretly happy about - something about Christmas lights gave him fuzzy feelings in his stomach that reminded him of home, his childhood, and cozy winter nights with his ma.

Sure enough, when he plugged the lights in, the entire space lit up in a nostalgic, familiar glow. Cloud couldn’t help the smile that escaped from his lips as he glanced up at the tree from where he was kneeling next to it.

After Aerith had successfully tossed silvery tinsel pieces all over the tree and Tifa and Cloud had wrapped the skirt around the tree trunk’s pot, it was time to put the ornaments on. The bulbs Aerith’s aunt had for them were shiny gold and red, and they came in all different sizes. Tifa was the de-facto leader here, making sure that there wasn’t too much of a concentration of gold together. By the time they’d finished an hour after starting, the tree looked absolutely magical.

“Not bad,” Sephiroth mused from behind them.

Aerith giggled and tugged on Zack’s hand excitedly. “It’s better than not bad,” she admonished. “It’s _perfect._ Don’t you think, Zack?”

“If you like it, it’s perfect for me,” Zack replied smoothly with a cheeky grin and a kiss to her cheek.

Cloud felt Tifa’s hand slip into his and he looked over to her. Her eyes were shiny and she was smiling that genuine, heartfelt smile that he loved. He kissed her hand before looking back at the tree. It really was pretty special, the best they’d ever done.

“I made cookies,” Sephiroth announced then. The group turned to face the kitchen and saw that indeed there was an entire island’s worth of sugar cookies cooling on the black granite. Sitting next to these were bowls of colored frosting and an unnecessary amount of clear bottles filled with a wide assortment of sprinkles and candies.

Aerith gasped. “Seph, this is incredible!” she gushed as she rushed forward to admire the spectacle. “Let’s decorate them now!”

“You do that,” Zack told her with a grin. “I gotta borrow Spiky here for a minute.”

Cloud side-eyed him, saw his expression, and nodded once. “Go ahead,” he told Tifa. “I won’t be long.”

While Sephiroth pointed out the coolest cookies to start decorating, Zack grabbed Cloud’s sleeve and tugged him into the bedroom he and Aerith had claimed. Shutting the door with a soft click, the older man whirled around and beamed like a ray of sunshine.

“All right, let’s see it,” Cloud sighed, holding out his hand and waving his fingers. Zack was more than happy to oblige as he reached for his luggage and dug around for a few moments, expression dipping into thoughtfulness and confusion before relief shuttered the other emotions down.

“I just picked it up yesterday,” he explained in a hushed voice as he held up the object in question - a very obviously shaped square jewelry box. Cloud accepted it and carefully folded it open to reveal the jewel inside.

The engagement ring was silver with interweaving jewels wrapping around the sides and ending in a pattern remiss of flower petals around a blush pink sapphire. The light caught on the ring’s reflective surfaces, causing a sparkle that reminded Cloud of Aerith’s glitter-covered hands and sparkly eyes.

“It’s perfect,” he told Zack sincerely as he snapped the box shut and handed it back.

This elicited a breathless chuckle from the other as he cradled the box in his hands. “Of course it is, you helped pick it out,” he pointed out. “Seriously, man. Thank you. Now show me what you got Tifa!”

Cloud had known this was coming, and he pulled the thin box out of his back pocket where he’d discreetly hid it earlier. He’d refrained from wrapping it because he was too nervous; even now his heart hammered as he handed it to his best friend. Zack took it and opened it eagerly, his eyes widening and a smirk sliding across his face.

“Perfect,” he echoed Cloud’s earlier sentiment.

Cloud turned red and took the box back, stuffing it in his back pocket. “You don’t think it’s cheesy? Too much?” He asked uncertainly.

“Dude, I’m about _to propose_ ,” Zack said in an exaggerated whisper and an eye-roll. “I don’t think your gift is ‘too much’ at all. She’ll really like it. I bet she’ll cry.”

Cloud blanched; making Tifa cry hadn’t been his intention at all. “I want her to like it,” he said in confusion.

“She will, they’ll be _happy tears,_ Cloud.”

The chuckle elicited from Zack broke Cloud’s confusion and he huffed, crossing his arms. “Are you going to wrap yours?” he asked then.

With a nod, Zack replied, “Yup! I’m going to do a russian doll-style wrapping.” He pulled out a box from where it sat next to his luggage, and Cloud looked at it with an eyebrow quirked. Then Zack opened the lid. Inside was...another box. Underneath the lid of the second box was...another box.

He was beginning to get the picture.

“Anyway, I gotta wrap mine quick. You should probably wrap yours too.”

Cloud sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I was just going to put it in a gift bag,” he mumbled.

“Whatever, man.”

Two freshly-wrapped (or in Cloud’s case, bagged) gifts later, the boys brought the presents discreetly out into the living room to stick under the tree. Cloud caught a whiff of the conversation happening back in the kitchen as he snuck by, and his eyes watched the back of Tifa’s hair as she leaned forward to grab another cookie. She, Aerith, and Sephiroth were each on stools. The girls were definitely having more fun with their decorating, but Sephiroth was nothing short of a perfectionist. With frosting bag in his steady hand, he carefully frosted the top of a snowman in a bright green.

It was the topic of conversation that had him pausing while he was at the tree, not wanting to look like he was listening in. His distance worked; they continued talking as if he hadn’t entered the room. Zack plopped on the sofa and watched him with crossed arms and a grin on his face. He knew _exactly_ what the story was, of course.

“I didn’t understand how to interact with somebody I liked and so I went about it in...not the most...polite of ways,” Sephiroth was explaining in a low voice. He almost sounded embarrassed. “Aerith told me to leave it alone, so I have. And now he has you.”

“Damn straight,” Aerith nodded with a grin at Tifa. Her eyes slid over Cloud’s as he watched them warily, but gave no indication to the others that he was listening in. “It’s a silly thing that happened way back in the past.”

“And...you don’t like him anymore?” Tifa’s tone was quiet, unsure. Cloud couldn’t see her face but he could almost make out the confusion that would crease between her eyebrows as her warm, wine eyes searched for uncertain affirmation.

Sephiroth gave a quick wry smile at his cookie as he set it down, apparently finished with it. Aerith promptly picked it up and began to throw sprinkles all over it. Sephiroth answered, “Cloud Strife is very intriguing, that much is certain. But no, I do not “like” him in the way you mean. Although, his company is always appreciated. He reminds me of myself when I was younger.”

Aerith stifled a giggle behind her hand as she plopped down the almost-empty bottle of sprinkles. “You were a bit hot-headed yourself, Seph,” she teased. “He always had to be the best at everything. But he’s also fiercely loyal. Now you just need to find yourself somebody like Cloud has, and you’ll be two peas in a pod!”

Cloud could feel his entire face reddening, and he huffed and sat down next to Zack, effectively breaking the illusion that he wasn’t there. Zack was barely containing laughter of his own now, and Cloud crossed his arms, determinedly looking anywhere but at anybody else.

“Oh, Cloud!” Tifa said in surprise as she looked over at the couch. Cloud met her eyes for the briefest moment before he looked away again in embarrassment. In the back of his mind, small relief blossomed as he realized he wouldn’t need to tiptoe around Sephiroth anymore, especially if the other man didn’t like him as he used to. This small relief was short-lived, however, as he suddenly found Tifa in front of him with her arms crossed, a dash of green frosting on her cheek as she smiled at him.

“Heya.”

“Uh, hi,” he mumbled back, reaching up instinctively to brush away the frosting with his thumb. He brought the now-coated thumb to his mouth and let his tongue enjoy the delectably sweet taste of buttercream. This caused Tifa’s cheeks to turn pink as she stared at him, wide-eyed.

That look was going to kill him.

After the cookies had all been decorated - and yes, even Cloud had begrudgingly agreed to assist the process, if only to speed it along - Sephiroth laid out homemade lasagna and a caesar salad around the island Zack had just finished wiping off. Cloud paused, broom in hand with the evidence of cookie-decorating in the form of sprinkles of every shape and size waiting underneath the broom to go into the dust pan. The lasagna was fresh and left a rich, hearty smell in his nose of tomato and cheese. His stomach grumbled at the thought of a proper dinner, and his wasn’t the only one.

It was as he was halfway through his second generous helping of lasagna that Cloud was able to stop long enough to appreciate that Sephiroth was indeed a good chef. There was something about the food that was so delicious that he could barely stop to savor it.

“This is delicious!” Tifa admired out loud for everybody as she smiled at the chef in question. “You’re a great cook!”

The corners of Sephiroth’s mouth twitched. “Thank you,” he said humbly.

Cloud thought that perhaps they’d set a record with the speed at which they ate, and even he wasn’t outmatched by Zack who ate half the lasagna himself. His mouth so full of food that his cheeks puffed out was more than enough to make everybody at the table laugh. This was turning out to be a surprisingly good Christmas weekend after all.

When the dishes had been sent through the dishwasher and everybody was full, Cloud relaxed on the sectional, his arm draped around Tifa’s shoulder and hand pressing her against him. Her warmth was a comfort next to him and he felt a bit like nodding off.

“We should go in the hot tub,” Aerith brought up then. She was gazing dreamily outside at the way the silvery moon on the clearing night shone through the stalwart pines covered in thick layers of snow. It looked cold outside, but a dip in the hot tub didn’t sound like a bad idea. Cloud looked down at Tifa, whose head was nestled into his chest. She looked up and met his gaze, smiling.

“Let’s do it,” she agreed.

Zack whooped in excitement. “All right! Party in the hot tub, last one in is a rotten egg!” he crowed, hopping to his feet and dashing to his bedroom.

“I think I’ll pass this time,” Sephiroth said from the end of the sectional where he’d been sitting and relaxing with a glass of whiskey. He stood up and nodded to each of them. “Good night.”

A chorus of “good night” followed him as he retreated into the master bedroom and shut the door. Cloud helped Tifa to her feet as Aerith bounded to hers, and they all went to change into their swimsuits.

Tifa chuckled as she stared at Cloud’s swimming trunks after he’d changed into them. “You really need to buy some new ones, Cloud.”

Cloud looked down indignantly at his favorite swimming trunks. They were a bit old and frayed, yes, but the black fabric and red stitching made for a really cool look. Cloud liked looking cool.

“What’s wrong with these?” he asked in mock annoyance. “I’ve had these longer than we’ve been dating! Longer than college, even. Ma bought these for me for my birthday.”

“I remember,” she laughed as she did the strings on the halter of her magenta one-piece. She looked drop-dead gorgeous in her suit, and he couldn’t stop his eyes from lingering in more sensitive places for a few long moments. “That was the year we-”

She cut herself off and stopped for a moment, hands uncertainly falling down to her sides. Cloud blinked in confusion as he tried to follow where she had been taking the conversation. If he remembered correctly, that was the year she’d hosted the pool party for his birthday. 

_Oh._

Which meant that in actuality, her _dad_ had hosted the pool party.

Cloud rushed over as the realization washed over him, taking her into his arms as she let out an involuntary sniffle.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured into her hair, brushing his fingers along the soft, straight locks in an effort to soothe her. There was movement from the side of his vision and Cloud looked out the window to see Zack standing there, arms wrapped loosely in a towel as he grinned and pointed back towards the hot tub. Cloud gestured him away and turned his body so Tifa couldn’t see him.

Tifa sniffed and wiped her eyes. “I’m okay,” she reassured shakily. “You’d think it happened yesterday. I can’t believe it’s been three years already tomorrow.”

Cloud looked down and met her watery eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked gently. She nodded and sighed, stepping away to give a final tug on the straps of her halter.

Aerith had left a couple towels slung over the side of the sectional by the patio door, and while he knew it wouldn’t keep him warm against the chill of the evening, he wrapped his around his shoulders anyway. Tifa followed suit and stared out at the deck, where an inch of snow and fast-moving footprints stretched between them and the waiting hot tub. Zack and Aerith were already in the water, both immersed up to their necks in an attempt to stay warm. Aerith waved them over with a big smile as steam gently rolled up into the air around them.

Cloud tugged the door open and gestured Tifa out first. She took a deep breath, smiled shakily at him, and took off at a sprint through the snow. The involuntary shriek that ripped from her lips as her bare feet hit the white blanket was expected, yet Cloud still watched carefully as she stepped light on her feet and up the stairs, almost diving into the hot tub as her towel was shoved haphazardly on the stack at the edge of the tub. And now it was his turn. Cloud sighed and stepped outside, flinching as his foot found the biting cold of the snow waiting patiently for him. In one swift tug he closed the patio door and took off to join his friends.

There was something nostalgic and exciting about soaking in the hot tub in the dead of winter, surrounded by frosty air that escaped their lips in white, breathy puffs, the equally white swirls of steam from the hot water, and the quiet, still world around them.

Elmyra Gainsborough’s cabin was nestled in a coniferous forest at the slopes of a series of wooded hills that knew what snow was like in an intimate setting. The view from the back porch was nothing less than impressive, even though the hilly route they’d taken to get up here was on the other side of the house. Tall pines pointed north even while their branches and needles sagged under the immense coating of snow that blanketed each of them. A neighboring cabin was nestled down the hill a ways, its lights off for the evening. And above them, lit in a way that Midgar’s city lights could never provide, was the neverending expanse of dark blue and glittering stars breaking through the rapidly thinning clouds. Soft, silvery light from the moon at the other end of the yard lit the clouds up in an impressive display of warmth. The air he breathed in burned his nose from the chill, but the warm steam defrosted it almost immediately as he sank down until just his head was above the water. This place was picturesque.

“Hey now, keep your hands where we can see them, you two,” Zack mock-scolded with a wicked grin on his face while Aerith giggled behind her hands. Cloud and Tifa looked at each other and rolled their eyes, but both held up their hands as if they were surrendering.

“We’re not going to do anything,” Cloud said hotly, glaring at his friend.

Tifa, whose face had gone a little red - from the cold or from the accusation that brought up many memories from the year before - brought her hands back under the water and around herself. Cloud, eyes boring right into Zack’s, purposefully maneuvered to be right next to her and wrapped his arm around her waist.

“See? Nothing bad.”

Zack barked out a laugh and moved to make the same position on Aerith, who was still giggling. Cloud spent one quick moment reminiscing on the struggles of the year before, how Tifa had been still in open grieving for her dad, whom she’d lost on Christmas Eve two years before. With both parents gone and her still being five months shy of turning eighteen, Cloud’s mom had instantly taken her in. It had been such a strange time for Cloud, who was already a freshman at Midgar U, to learn that his childhood crush was now living with his mom. Two years ago, he’d just wanted to comfort her and help her through the grief she felt at what used to be her favorite time of year. So naturally, he invited her to their first annual Christmas weekend at Aerith’s aunt’s cabin. One thing had led to another, and...well, he looked down at the steam rising from the hot tub as he felt a blush of his own creep onto his face. It had taken another year for Zack and Aerith to find out, but since then, they hadn’t let the matter drop. Cloud would _never_ be engaging in sexual activity in a space used by others again, this much he knew.

“So I was thinking,” Aerith started as she broke through Cloud’s thoughts and the empty silence that surrounded them. It was a peaceful silence, broken every so often by the gentle creaking of branches straining beneath mounds of snow and the subtle, chilly breeze that ruffled tifa’s hair and made his eyes water. This kind of peace was something he missed about Nibelheim; Midgar could never give him the quiet that his childhood had ingrained into memory. “I’d like to do something special for Seph for Christmas.”

Cloud frowned in thought, mind drifting back over to the not-so-awkward interactions with the man as Tifa answered for the rest of them, “What are you thinking, Aerith?”

Aerith smiled. “Well, I know his one big dream has always been to be surrounded by family at Christmas, which of course makes no sense since he’s avoided it with the family as often as he can. I’m not sure why, honestly.”

“Maybe it’s some kind of bad memory?” Tifa’s voice wavered a little and made the rest of the group know exactly what she was thinking. Cloud wouldn’t put it past Sephiroth to have some kind of tragic holiday backstory he was unaware of.

"Perhaps…” Aerith pursed her lips in thought for a moment before she broke into a big grin. “Anyway, my idea was to give him exactly that.”

Cloud tilted his head as Zack asked, “How do you suggest we do that?”

“Easy!” She held up her hands, as if she were holding an imaginary camera. She pointed it towards Cloud and Tifa before swinging her hands over to her boyfriend and giving an imaginary shutter sound to accompany the finger motion. “We take a picture in our ugly sweaters tomorrow, all of us. And then Zack and I run off to get it processed, get a frame, and wrap it. Then Seph will always have family for Christmas!”

Tifa made an audible “aww” noise while Cloud nodded his appreciation. “Good idea,” he affirmed.

“That’s my girl!” Zack said proudly, pulling her closer and planting an exaggerated kiss on her cheek. “Always thinking about others first.”

With that in mind, the group settled in to watch the show of nature slow the rhythm of their hearts while they enjoyed each other’s company and the watchful gaze of twinkling stars.

* * *

The next morning was Christmas Eve. Cloud was awake at some god-awful time he didn’t want to give credence to by glancing at his phone on the nightstand. His arm was curled around Tifa, pulling the sleeping woman closer to him. She was warm and comforting, and he stubbornly pressed his eyes closed to try and resume sleeping.

When that wasn’t going to work, Cloud sighed softly to himself, feeling antsy already to get up and enjoy the day. Tifa was definitely more of a late sleeper, so he did his best to disentangle himself from her body and replace himself with his pillows. She breathed in deeply and shifted a little but did not wake up, to his relief. Cloud tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear and kissed her forehead, before dipping off the bed and slipping on his plaid pajama bottoms and his favorite hoodie.

Closing the bedroom door softly behind him, he turned around to get a good first look at the morning. The sun was beginning to peek above the trees, and its glow through thin layers of clouds turned the sky soft pink and orange. In the living room, the Christmas tree was dark and silent, a few bits of tinsel glistening in the reflections of the light from outside. And in the kitchen, sitting at the counter and scrolling through his phone, was Sephiroth.

_Oh._

It was too late to turn back now, as the older man had turned his eyes up and had seen him. So Cloud sauntered over like that had been his plan all along and reached into the partially ajar pantry to pull out a box of cereal. After grabbing a bowl, spoon, and jug of milk, he set about making himself breakfast.

“Good morning,” Sephiroth said smoothly as he resumed scrolling on his phone.

From his angle, Cloud could see he was looking through a new app. He set the box of cereal down and poured milk over it, before pulling up the seat next to the other man. “Morning,” he replied before spooning the first bite in.

For a few surprisingly comfortable minutes, Cloud ate and Sephiroth scrolled, both existing in a manner not interruptive of the other. In his mind, Cloud was wondering if he should say something in regards to last night’s conversation between the other man and Tifa. It took downing the milk at the bottom of the bowl for him to work up the courage to speak.

“Look, I’m sorry about-” he began just as Sephiroth had started saying, “Cloud, I’m sorr-” Both men broke off and Cloud couldn’t stop the relieved grin from showing on his face as Sephiroth chuckled to himself.

“I...heard you talking to Tifa last night,” Cloud pointed out in a low voice as he glanced back towards the bedroom where she was still sleeping.

Sephiroth sighed, clicked his phone off, and set it face-down on the island. “I’ve not been on my best behavior,” he admitted in an equally-low voice. “I apologize if this has caused contention between us.”

“It isn’t just your fault, it’s mine, too. I’m sorry for being awkward about things,” Cloud replied.

The corners of Sephiroth’s mouth twitched. “Friends?”

“Friends.”

When the other man held his hand out, Cloud accepted it with a firm shake. Things were off to a much better start today than they’d ever been. “So, did you bring your ugly sweater?” he asked conversationally as he stood up and brought his bowl over to the sink to rinse it out.

“I’m sorry?” Sephiroth asked in confusion. “Ugly...sweater?”

Cloud barked out a quick laugh. “Aerith didn’t tell you? It’s a tradition. Good thing she always brings extras in case one of us ‘forgets.’” He frowned as he stared out the kitchen window at the pristine snow, lost in a memory their first year when he had tried to “forget” to bring one and Aerith had pulled out something twice as hideous as he’d looked at in the first place. He made sure to not make that mistake again.

Sephiroth chuckled again.

It took another hour for everybody else to awake, but when they did, Aerith turned into her mother mode, making sure that everybody would be changing into their ugly Christmas sweaters and jeans. Cloud was particularly proud of his this year, even though he hated the activity - Tifa had found him one with a really cool motorcycle with real working lights that was all decked out in Christmas lights. It was black, too - something which didn’t do nearly enough to soften the party on the front of the shirt, but was at least a bit more tolerable than the bright red Christmas present of a sweater with actual ribbon and bows everywhere that Zack proudly stood in, hands on his hips as he grinned.

“Nice one, Spikey,” he admired with a thumbs’ up.

Cloud rolled his eyes and quirked a smile. “Right back at you,” he responded sarcastically.

Aerith, herself decked out in a red and white striped sweater with candy canes embroidered all over it, came back inside from the cold exterior, gesturing them forward to point out where she’d set up the tripod. It was facing a backdrop of snow-covered trees and a perfect blue sky, which was about as winter as a background they would ever have.

“Excellent location, Aerith,” Tifa said enthusiastically as she bobbed her head in excitement, causing the crown of silver bells around her head to jingle merrily. She was wearing a sweater that looked to be made completely of silver and gold garland, with a couple of shiny baubles sewn in just to add that extra ugly feel. She looked like an absolute angel.

Sephiroth, who was crossing his arms and standing behind them, hummed once. Cloud looked back at him and almost burst out laughing at the ridiculous sight. Sure enough, Aerith had thought ahead and made sure a sweater in Sephiroth’s size was ready to go. He was wearing a forest green sweater with a three-dimensional Christmas tree on it, lights and garland and star and all. Lining his sleeves were small strands of embroidered lights. The sweater, accompanied by his always-serious expression, almost sent him over the edge with laughter.

Cloud may have caught himself, but that didn’t stop Zack from busting out laughing as he took in the sight. “I can’t believe you’re doing this with us, man,” he managed to get out in between fits of laughter. “Aerith has been torturing us for years and you did it without complaint!”

“I’ve learned to just...go with the flow when it comes to Aerith,” Sephiroth replied smoothly as he crossed his arms over the Christmas tree jutting out from his chest. “It’s a perk of knowing her for so long.”

Aerith laughed too. “All right, guys. Let’s do this quick - it’s freezing out there!”

Since they wanted a nice photo with the sweaters, that meant none of them could wear jackets. It didn’t stop Cloud from plopping his favorite beanie on his head and stuffing his fingers into a pair of black gloves, however. Zack picked up a santa hat and plopped it on his head, looking very proud at his ingenuity. Tifa pulled gloves on too and took Cloud’s gloved hand in hers. Sephiroth was somehow able to pull off a tasteful gray scarf with his ridiculous ensemble.

And then they were off. His first intake of breath was a shock to his lungs, and Cloud shivered involuntarily. For how brilliant the sun was shining through the house, it wasn’t making things warmer. He tugged Tifa along so they could get into place as quickly as possible. Sephiroth stood in the middle, while Zack waited on the other side for Aerith to set the timer on the camera. She came dashing through the snow (literally) and almost tripped over her feet, until Zack caught her arm and hauled her into an embrace.

“Thanks,” she squeaked. Zack just beamed down at her. Cloud brought his arm around Tifa’s waist and tilted his head down towards hers. Tifa nudged him a bit closer to Sephiroth too. Then the rampant sound of clicking happened for a good five seconds - was the camera taking a hundred photos? - before it was done. Then the mad dash to get back inside had more than one member of the group stumbling over their feet and faceplanting in the snow - and Cloud wasn’t about to admit to himself he was one of them.

After laughing and changing back into normal clothing, Zack whisked Aerith out the door with on-the-surface white lies about getting more Christmas food for the next day. Sephiroth didn’t look too surprised, which had the group as a whole sighing in relief. Tifa set up shop in the kitchen, chatting away to Sephiroth as he cooked and she finished wrapping gifts. At one point, she shoved Cloud towards the living room and told him sternly to look away so she could wrap his gift in private. Cloud grumbled to himself but accepted his fate, crossing his arms and laying back into the plush cushions of the sectional. It wasn’t as bad when Sephiroth brought him a fresh mug of hot cocoa with whipped cream and crushed candy canes on top. He accepted the drink with a grunt of “thanks” and a hum of contentment when he took his first sip and felt the unmistakable taste of peppermint schnapps thinly veiled under layers of creamy chocolate. Within a few minutes of staring out the window and at the silent fireplace, he was feeling a warm tingling in his fingers and toes again.

After a few minutes, Tifa was done wrapping gifts and brought the stack over to the tree. Cloud watched with anticipation as she set them down, inwardly wondering whether his was the large one on the bottom. Of course, the size of the present didn’t matter - his eyes flickered over to his gift for her hiding partially behind Zack’s large box full of boxes for Aerith. He had the rest of his gifts in their bags in the room, but hadn’t brought them out yet. He’d have to do that soon.

“We should watch a movie!” Tifa declared after arranging her gifts under the tree. She pulled open a set of doors on a cabinet next to the tree, where Elmyra kept a bunch of Christmas movies just for this occasion. Cloud half suspected that she stocked the movie center with seasonally appropriate DVDs just for them, but he certainly wasn’t complaining as he got down on his knees and joined her in rummaging through the movies.

They were a few minutes into a bit of a spat when Sephiroth interrupted them. “What seems to be the problem?” he asked as he inserted himself into the conversation, perching on the edge of the sofa and looking at them with intrigue.

“Aha!” Tifa grinned mischievously at Cloud and held up the two DVD’s in question. “Which Home Alone movie do you think would be the better one to watch for Christmas: one or two?”

“Keep in mind that two is definitely the better one,” Cloud added with a smirk back at her. Two could play that game.

“But _one_ is the classic,” she finished firmly as she brandished both out at Sephiroth, muttering under her breath, “you don’t even like them, I don’t know why you’re arguing so much.”

Cloud sighed dramatically. “Just because my favorite Christmas movie is Die Hard doesn’t mean I don’t like other Christmas movies,” he said with a roll of his eyes.

“Die Hard isn’t even a Christmas movie!”

“Is so.”

Sephiroth cleared his throat and the silly argument was put on pause as the couple both looked up at him to see his answer. He was clearly amused. “I’ve never seen either, so I can’t say which is better than the other.”

Cloud and Tifa looked at each other and back at Sephiroth.

“ _Never_?” Tifa asked in shock. Cloud nodded his agreement; even he had seen them both a fair amount of times and he wasn’t the biggest fan of (real) Christmas movies.

The older man shook his head. “Never had the opportunity,” he stated.

“That settles it,” Tifa declared. Cloud sighed his concedence but had to agree when she held up the first movie triumphantly. “We’re watching Home Alone.”

That was where Zack and Aerith returned to find them an hour later, Cloud splayed across the floor with his head in Tifa’s lap while she used the couch as a backrest. Sephiroth lounged on the sectional behind them, half of his body covered in a fuzzy knit blanket that had been draped across the back. Sephiroth had been commenting on the impossibility and improbability that the two burglars would even have gone back to the home while Tifa was giggling at him. Cloud was not really paying attention, instead letting his eyes watch the screen while his mind wandered. He may have dozed off when Tifa began combing her fingers through his hair, because suddenly there was a loud commotion and Zack was in front of him with a large, thin package under his arm as he stuffed it under the tree.

“Didn’t mean to wake you up there, sleeping beauty!” he exclaimed loudly with an exaggerated wink. Cloud groaned, having shot up from the startling noise of Zack’s boots in front of him, and ran a hand down his face.

“Please get out of the way, we’re trying to watch,” Sephiroth requested politely of the other man.

Zack took one look at him, glanced back to the tv, and then he marched right over to the sectional and plopped down next to Sephiroth’s feet. “Excellent choice,” he commented as he brought his feet up to sit cross-legged and grinned at Cloud. “No Die Hard this year?”

Cloud grumbled about Tifa not letting him, which had the room alight with laughter. He untangled himself from Tifa, crawled underneath Sephrioth’s line of vision to the television, and stood up, stretching his arms as he did so. A nap was sounding better and better. Then he spotted the glass pan full of the decorated cookies from the day before, and his stomach growled a bit. Cookies it was.

When the movie ended, Sephiroth showed great interest in skipping an intermission and going straight into the second movie, which Aerith put a stop to because, as she said it, “It’s time to put our presents under the tree, silly.” With Tifa’s present already underneath and she already being done, Cloud found himself alone in the bedroom digging through his gifts to his friends and stuffing them into gift bags he’d kept from the previous year. His mom had taught him frugality quite well.

Crowding around the Christmas tree when Cloud emerged a couple minutes later, hefting armfuls of bags (all hanging on various parts of his arms like a pro) were the rest of the group. Each of them were talking over the others while Aerith tried to reach under the tree to grab a present and Zack swatted her hand away. Tifa was laughing behind a hand as she met his gaze with shining ruby eyes. Sephiroth was sitting up on the couch now with his legs stretched out on the table in front of him looking somehow bored and amused at the same time. It was quite a sight.

“Couldn’t find the patience to wrap them?” Aerith asked teasingly when Cloud approached the group properly.

He shrugged back and began letting the bags slide down his arm one by one. “I’ve never been good at wrapping, and that’s what gift bags are for, anyway,” he told her with a sly grin as he began to shove his bags underneath the Christmas tree..

The rest of the afternoon and evening passed by with little incident, and resulted in the requested encore of Home Alone 2 by Sephiroth who seemed particularly invested in young Kevin’s efforts to evade and stop the worst burglars known to man with his contraptions. The rest of them crowded around, armed with a fresh batch of hot chocolate that contained a lot more peppermint schnapps than last time, if Cloud had to draw a comparison. Perhaps it had something to do with the shifty, heavy hand Zack saved for bonding moments such as these, but there was a pleasant buzz in his head spreading through the rest of his body by the time they sat down for an early supper.

Then, after they had eaten...it was time. Cloud sighed as he and Tifa looked at each other again. The excited shine in her face had shifted into meek determination at the prospect of her next tradition. Lower lip tugging between her teeth, she tentatively reached her hand over the table and their dirty dishes that Aerith whisked away before they could even think about it. Cloud glanced over at Zack to see him nod, for once without the trademark grin that always seemed permanently etched into his face.

As Cloud led Tifa back to their bedroom for privacy, he heard Sephiroth quietly ask what was going on. Then they closed the door and both sat cross-legged on the bed, facing each other. Cloud pulled out his phone with his left hand, right still firmly gripping hers.

“Are you ready?” he asked gently. Tifa nodded while taking a deep breath and letting it out in one quick _whoosh_. Then he looked back at his phone and pulled up his recent calls. He pressed the second number and let it auto-dial on speakerphone.

Cloud’s mother picked up on the first ring, already anticipating the call. Cloud flipped the camera button on and waited for her to do the same.

“Hold on, just give me a moment...you know how I hate these phones,” Claudia muttered under her breath. In the background on her end was a weird, muted silence, and he could very easily picture her standing in the dark, her fingers fumbling in their thick gloves to find the right place to push. It took a few more patient moments, but then suddenly the screen came to life and there, by the front flashlight of his mother’s phone camera, was Claudia Strife.

“There you are!” she gushed happily as she drank in his face as best as she could through the phone. He did the same, since he hadn’t seen her since summer. Were there a few more smile lines in the crow’s feet outside her eyes? Either way, her smile, a mirror image of his, was genuine and happy. It was nice to see it.

So he smiled back, saying, “Hey ma. I have Tifa here to say hello too.”

“Perfect, hand the phone over. And don’t think you’re ending this call without a proper talk, okay?” she half scolded with a smile. Cloud rolled his eyes and handed it over to Tifa, who accepted it nervously.

“Hey, Mrs. Strife,” she said shyly.

There was immediate feedback. “Tifa, dear, you know better than that. Call me Claudia or mom, whichever you prefer. You’re family, after all.”

The warmth in his mom’s voice brought a light flush to Cloud’s cheeks, and he held Tifa’s hand tighter as he once again turned over his and Zack’s conversation and plans from the day before. He knew that someday he would be making the same decision, hands down. Tifa was the easiest constant in his life, and she was the one thing he never wanted to let go of, especially not now.

“Now, I’ve done my best to keep it all nice and tidy, you know me,” Claudia was telling his girlfriend. “I change out the flowers every week, keep the grass short, trim the hedges. There’s a good amount of snow over here so I’ve been keeping the stone clear. It’s a bit dark here but maybe if I turn the camera around…”

Tifa actually laughed a little at that. “You can just push the button in your top right-hand corner,” she explained. “Then the camera will switch to the back one.”

“Oh really? Let’s try that...oh wow! Amazing!”

“...hey, Dad,” Tifa said softly to the image of her father’s gravestone.

And so the conversation continued while Cloud rubbed soothing circles on the back of Tifa’s hand while his mom let Tifa visit with her dad. In his mind, he thought back those three years and how so much of his life had changed since then. As horrible as the car accident that killed her father was, it had set off a chain reaction of events that led him and Tifa together, something that he had always dreamed of but more like he would an unattainable goal. Never in a million years had he thought he would be the luckiest man alive to find somebody so sweet, so caring, so _alive_ and willing to be there for him. Tifa was his rock so he did his best to be hers when she needed it.

“Thank you,” Tifa finally whispered to his mom on the other side of the phone, and her eyes were shiny from tears that left small tracks down her rosy cheeks. “I think I would like to come home soon and visit him more.”

There was some shifting on the other end of the phone as Claudia began to walk out of the cemetery. “You are always welcome, my dear,” she said with a big smile. “Now put my son back on, I want to wish him a merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, ma,” Cloud said as he accepted the phone back and gave Tifa’s hand another reassuring squeeze. He received one in return.

His mom was scrutinizing him with a small smile. “I hope you’re having fun on your vacation. You know you can always swing home for New Year’s,” she mentioned sneakily.

“I know, I know,” he complained, unable to keep the smirk from his face. “I’ll think about it, I promise.”

She chuckled as she opened her car door and ushered herself inside. “You and your friends are all welcome out here. And you better be taking good care of Tifa now, you hear? You have a good thing going and she needs you to be strong for her.”

“I’m not sure, I think it’s the other way around,” Cloud joked with a wink at Tifa. She blushed and smiled with watery eyes. “I love you, ma. Merry Christmas.”

“Merry Christmas, my son,” she said back. Cloud hung up the call and let the phone drop to the bed, and then he pulled Tifa in for a hug. She let out a ragged breath as he did that, and he felt tension release from her shoulders.

“Are you okay?” he questioned her as he stroked her hair.

She sighed and shuddered a little. “Yes,” she whispered. “I just need a few moments to compose myself. I’ll be fine, promise.”

“There’s no hurry.” Cloud pulled away and rested his forehead against hers, closing his eyes to the intimate touch. “We can just stay here the rest of the night if you’d like. You know Aerith would prefer that anyway with her ‘be in bed by 11 pm’ rule.”

A small choked laugh bubbled up from her and he pulled back to meet her gaze. “I love Aerith’s rules,” she admitted with a small smile. 

They sat like that for a few minutes, relishing in each other’s embrace and enjoying the ambience of Christmas eve in the chalet. In the next room over, somebody had put on classic Christmas tunes. The sound was slightly warped as it snuck its way under the bedroom door and forced its way through the walls to their ears. There was something soothing to Cloud about listening to it. Another wave of nostalgia hit him, taking him back to his childhood and his earlier Christmas memories with just him and his mom. In a wave of longing, he made the decision to discuss a potential New Years’ visit with his friends before the weekend was out.

Something else smelled delicious, and it was trying to determine the source of the smell that brought Tifa’s head up curiously. She sniffed the air.

“What _is_ that?” she asked in wonder.

Cloud shrugged and dropped his arms, opting instead to reach for her hand. “We should go find out.”

Back in the kitchen, Zack was peering over Sephiroth’s shoulder at the stove while Aerith was swinging her legs underneath the kitchen stool she sat in while munching on a Christmas cookie. In front of her was a photo album. Her eyes lit up at seeing them.

“Welcome back!” She greeted enthusiastically after swallowing. “Here Tifa, come over here and tell me who you think was cuter as a kid, me or Seph!”

As Tifa squeezed Cloud’s hand and moved forward, Cloud’s curiosity got the better of him. He approached the other two men, trying and failing to see around them. Sometimes he really hated being short.

“What’re you making?” he asked.

Zack whirled around, fingers wrapped around a bottle of white rum. His eyes were a little out of focus and he laughed. “I’m trying to convince Sephiroth here that mulled wine will taste _so_ much better with another type of alcohol in addition to wine, but he is not having it. Cloud, you gotta help me out!”

“Mulled wine takes specific ingredients and patience,” Sephiroth stated as he stirred the objects in the pot - Cloud could now see the dark maroon liquid and bits of cinnamon sticks and fruit bobbing merrily against the surface. That must have been what they were smelling.

“Sorry Zack, I’m going to go with the expert on this one,” he said with a smirk towards his friend. 

Zack groaned and took a swig straight from the bottle before setting it down. “Thanks a _lot_ , bro. You were supposed to be on my side! But alas...I have been betrayed.” He stomped over to the living room in a dramatic fashion and pressed the back of one hand to his forehead, falling over comedically.

“Stop being so dramatic, silly,” Aerith called from where she and Tifa were poring over the album. Next to Cloud, Sephiroth picked up a ladle and spooned a bit of the concoction into a mug before handing it over. Cloud accepted it with a nod of thanks.

The relaxed atmosphere of Christmas eve hung around for the rest of the evening, and they ended up playing a game of Monopoly before turning in - which turned out to be a mistake, because there was no such thing as a “quick” game of Monopoly and it turned out that Sephiroth was something of a professional at the game. When he started putting hotels on his spots, Cloud knew they were doomed. His own little house on each of his properties - the light blue, practically worthless at this point - were miniscule in comparison to the other’s monstrosities at Park Place and Broadway. Zack was still betting endlessly on his four railroads taking him to victory while Aerith meekly turned over her properties in bankrupted shame to her older brother. Tifa, owning a good quarter of the board herself, laugh and rolled the dice.

“You guys are ruthless,” Zack groaned when he landed on Broadway a moment later and forked over the rest of his cash to Sephiroth. “Doesn’t everybody know the person with the railroads is supposed to win?”

Cloud rolled his eyes. “Tell that to Mr. Monopoly Man over there,” he responded as he sighed and somehow made it past the blue properties himself. He had no idea how he was still in the game, but it was only a matter of time now.

After another few turns around the board, he ended up giving his properties over to Tifa and her fresh hotels on the red properties. This meant that it was now between Tifa and Sephiroth, and it was going to be a fierce battle. Zack returned from where he’d gone to pout in the kitchen a few minutes earlier with a fresh glass of mulled wine and a large bowl of popcorn. Cloud grabbed a handful for himself and fed Tifa pieces every now and then while she, eyes alight with determination, made her way skillfully around the board and upped all her properties to hotels to match Sephiroth’s.

A full hour, chastising by Aerith that they were late in getting to bed, an empty bowl and empty glasses, and erupted cheers as Sephiroth finally conceded defeat later, it was time for bed. As Cloud climbed into bed and pulled Tifa’s soft, warm body closer to cuddle, he realized that this was probably the best Christmas he’d experienced since he was a kid. Each individual experience was magical in itself, and the weekend was flying by, but tomorrow would be Christmas Day and the time for them to open each others’ presents, so everything would only get better. He closed his eyes with a small smile on his face as he inhaled the fresh scent of Tifa’s shampoo and relished in the warmth of their bodies together.

* * *

They awoke at the crack of dawn to the sound of a bloodcurdling scream.

Cloud shot upright, looking around wildly for signs of an intruder. Next to him, Tifa pulled the blankets up to her neck and gasped in fright. It took a few agonizingly long seconds for both to realize the screaming was Aerith and the words she was screaming was “YES YES YES YES!!” over and over.

Offering a smile to Tifa, Cloud rubbed his eyes. “I take it that’s our alarm this morning,” he said in a hoarse still-waking voice.

“Seems like,” she replied through a yawn. “What is she shrieking about, anyway?”

Cloud hid his face for a moment as he stretched and stood up. “Could be she’s saying “yes” to Zack’s Christmas present,” he commented cheekily. “Yes would be the hope for such a proposal.”

There was a beat of silence where he pulled his pajama pants on and relished in being able to finally share the news with Tifa. Then she was leaping out of bed and pulling her own pants on in a mad dash to get to the living room.

“Are you serious?” she exclaimed with wide eyes and a big grin. “Zack proposed?”

He nodded and tugged a hoodie on over his pajama shirt. “I helped him pick out the ring.”

Tifa opened the door and ran out of the room to join in the screaming that came from Aerith. Cloud followed a few minutes later, grin fixed on his face as he nodded towards a beaming Zack who was sitting on the floor in front of the Christmas tree. Zack returned the nod with a double thumbs-up.

“ _Cloud!_ ” Aerith shrieked, running over and brandishing her hand. “Did you really help Zack pick it out? It’s _perfect!_ ”

Cloud blushed a little and held his hands up. “All I did was help guide him to the right area,” he promised. “I’m glad you like it, Aerith.”

Just then, Sephiroth made his first appearance of the day, and Aerith practically threw herself into his arms to show him the ring. Cloud wandered over to the kitchen to get a pot of coffee going for the morning, knowing he would need it if the decibels of the day would be this loud. As the coffeemaker began making its excited spurts and brown liquid began pouring into the glass pot, he wandered back to the living room where Tifa, with a huge grin on her face, was sorting Christmas presents for everybody. It took a few minutes to wrangle everybody together, but eventually Cloud sat on the sectional in front of a pile of presents next to Sephiroth, who had a few himself. Tifa was at Cloud’s feet with a great stack (and his gift to her on top), and Zack and Aerith were practically joined at the hip in front of the Christmas tree as he kept planting kisses on her face and she kept sighing happily. Seeing them happy together made Cloud’s chest burn in a comfortable warmth.

The gifts were a great haul. As they opened each one, Cloud made sure to pass the trash bag around to keep the bows and wrapping paper and tissue paper down to a minimum. He was excited to see that the large package Tifa had put under the tree the day before was indeed for him, and he opted to save this one for last. This was probably the preferred approach, because his first two gifts were from Zack and Aerith and seemed to have a coordinated theme to them.

“It’s like they knew!” Tifa laughed as he held out the chocobo-themed swim trunks from Zack. She was munching on some of the candy assortment she’d gotten from Zack while wiggling her feet in her new socks. Cloud glanced down at the matching chocobo earrings he’d gotten from Aerith and, with a good-natured eye roll, he thanked them both.

Zack was trying to get away from Aerith for a moment to try on the most ridiculous neon green touristy shirt she’d given him, while waving his new tickets to Costa del Sol in front of his face like he was hot. Aerith was gushing over a small porcelain tea set that Tifa had gifted her. Her fingers traced over the beautiful yellow hand-painted flowers with admiration before she launched herself off Zack to hug her. Tifa gave her an equally enthusiastic hug over the spa basket she’d been gifted by the other women.

Sephiroth cleared his throat next to Cloud and everybody stopped what they were doing to look at the newest member to the annual Christmas weekend. He was holding up the large framed photo of them from the day before, his own face in the middle of the snowscape. At the bottom, scrawled in fancy lettering, was the word “family.”

“Thank you,” the silver-haired man said quietly, his voice breaking a little. It looked like he was trying not to show emotions.

Cloud, as the closest person to him, placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’re family,” he said simply.

“Yeah, you’re welcome to hang with us anytime!” Zack crowed with a grin. “You’re the best, Sephiroth!”

Sephiroth smiled and Cloud swore he saw a small tear leak out of his eye.

After opening the majority of the rest of their gifts (where Cloud was especially grateful for the new motorcycle helmet and gift card to his favorite auto parts shop that Tifa had thoughtfully given him), Cloud slid to the floor and wrapped an arm around Tifa. “You should open that one now,” he told her as he pointed to his gift.

“Okay,” she responded with a small smile and red cheeks. She reached for the bag, removed the tissue paper, and pulled the long, slender box out of the bag. She looked at him in wonder before returning her eyes to her gift. She opened the box with trembling hands.

Inside was the locket Cloud had been admiring from the jewelry shop window for the past five months. It was silver and simple, adorned on the front with a ring of diamonds and a ruby gemstone in the middle.

Tifa’s finger stroked the chain and felt along the necklace as she sucked in a breath. It seemed to take her a moment to realize there was more, and she fumbled for the clasp holding the locket closed. She managed to get it open and revealed the small photo Cloud had become intimately familiar with as he worked on getting the right size to fit inside. The picture showed her parents in a nice, formal portrait. They were all smiles and looked so much like his girlfriend next to him, and Cloud knew since she didn’t have them in person anymore, this would be the best way to have them close to her.

“Cloud…” she whispered with a voice full of emotion. “I… I don’t know what to say.”

He pressed his lips to the side of her forehead for a moment as he squeezed her shoulder. “Do you like it?” he murmured.

Her eyes looked up to meet his and she nodded, tears falling down her cheeks just as Zack had predicted they would. The smile on her face was absolutely radiant. “Yes,” she told him simply as she reached her arms around to give him a hug. “Thank you so much, Cloud.”

That burning sensation in his chest grew with contented warmth.

As they relished in their new Christmas items - Zack, with a candy cane stuffed in his mouth, brandishing his new pocket knife that looked a lot like a miniature broadsword and Aerith dipping into her “Wines of the World” tasting set Cloud had gifted her to celebrate the engagement while Tifa fit the new locket around her neck while Sephiroth sat happily while hugging his new photo frame - there was a moment where time seemed to stand still, as if each second was insignificant in the grand scheme of things. The only thing that mattered was they were happy, together, warm, and full of love for each other. The sun began its ascent into the sky with clouds the color of warm embers leaving the snow below stained a majestic warm gold. For a single moment, the world was perfect and everything they wanted was in their grasp.

_The End_


End file.
